The growing religious demands of Muslim workers at a car factory in Paris contributed to the plant's closure in 2013, Drancy deputy-mayor Jean-Christophe Lagarde has disclosed.

Lagarde made the revelation during an appearance on public service broadcaster France Info on Tuesday, in which he was asked about "communitarian trends" in Islam, where communities are becoming more religious and more insular.

"Religion has nothing to do with work" began his response, but the Union of Democrats and Independents (UDI) president went on to admit that Islam has caused a number of problems related to employment in the state he represents.